New South Wales Consolidated Regulations

ELECTRICITY SUPPLY (GENERAL) REGULATION 2001 - REG 14

14 Limitation on right to have premises provided with customer connection services

(1) For the purposes of section 15 (3) of the Act, a service provider is authorised to disconnect premises from, or refuse to connect premises to, a distribution system if the person who owns or occupies the premises:

(a) has failed to provide any security required by the service provider for the payment of any charge (not being a security agreed to be provided to the service provider on behalf of the person by a supplier), or

(b) has failed to pay an amount due to the service provider with respect to the provision of customer connection services (not being an amount agreed to be provided to the service provider on behalf of the person by a supplier), or

(c) has refused or failed to give an authorised officer access to any premises supplied with connection services by the service provider for any of the purposes specified in section 54 of the Act, or

(d) has obstructed the authorised person in relation to any act, matter or thing done or to be done in carrying out those purposes, or

(e) is not a party to a customer supply contract or a party to a new occupant supply arrangement or exempt last resort arrangement.

(2) A service provider must not disconnect premises from its distribution system on a ground referred to in subclause (1) unless the service provider has:

(a) in the case of premises the subject of a standard form customer connection contract or owned or occupied by a small retail customer, complied with the requirements of the customer connection contract with respect to the disconnection of the premises, or

(b) in any other case, given the customer reasonable notice of its intention to disconnect the premises to allow the customer a reasonable opportunity to remedy that ground or to enter a customer supply contract, as the case requires.

(3) For the purposes of section 15 (3) of the Act, a service provider is also authorised to disconnect premises from, or refuse to connect premises to, a distribution system if:

(a) the person who owns or occupies the premises:

(i) is a party to one or more contracts for the supply of electricity, or

(ii) is subject to a new occupant supply arrangement or exempt last resort arrangement, and

(b) in the case of a contract or supply arrangement the existence of which has been notified to the service provider, each supplier responsible for supplying electricity to the customer under any such contract or arrangement:

(i) has requested that the premises be disconnected, and

(ii) has notified the service provider that it has complied with any applicable requirements of this Regulation or the contract or arrangement relating to the giving of notice as to discontinuance of supply of electricity to the premises.

(4) Nothing in this clause affects the right to interrupt continuous supply as agreed in a customer connection contract.

(5) Nothing in this clause affects any right or obligation to disconnect premises, or to refuse to connect premises, arising from the operation of the Electricity Supply (Safety and Network Management) Regulation 2002 or Electricity (Consumer Safety) Act 2004 .